Crossing the Midline
Crossing the midline is an indicator of bilateral coordination, meaning the ability to use both sides of the body at the same time. The Neuro Sequential Model (NMT) (Perry, 2005) recommends repetitive activities that target both hemispheres of the brain. The bilateral stimulation allows for the left and right hemispheres of the brain to increase communication through the unifying brain structure of the Corpus Callosum. This allows the client to rely on both hemispheres of the brain equally. This action according to the NMT allows the brain to reorganise itself and to therefore continue to develop from where the interruption began (Elbrecht, 2018).
Bilateral coordination is important for many body based and daily tasks, including walking, climbing stairs, riding a bike, a skateboard or for babies learning to crawl. The development of bilateral coordination is also important for the development of higher order cognitive skills, such as the ability to read, write and learn. These skills utilise the communication between both hemispheres of our brain. The ability to cross our midline is a “prerequisite” for this learning. If lateralisation is not established, a person may have difficulties in various areas: making decisions, organising, writing, reading, and language development (Elbrecht, 2018).
The Right Left Song
This is an intervention I have used in Drum Therapy sessions. I borrowed it from a music therapist's post (musictherapymaven.com, 2010) who works with children who are neurodivergent.
The Right Left Song:
Right and left and right and left Susie’s playing the drum
She’s going right and left and right and left she’s playing the drum. (Repeat)
As she sings, Susie uses mallets to play two drums, alternating using her right hand to play the drum on the left side of her body and her left hand to play the drum on the right side of her body. All in time to the music. It’s a crossing the midline experience, but it also integrates auditory, visual, and proprioceptive sensory information (musictherapymaven.com, 2010).
I am also genuinely inspired by music therapist Allison Davies who hosts Music and the Brain (allisondavies.com.au, 2020). Allison introduced me to the superpower of humming as a tool to avoid a toddler meltdown. The link between our five senses reminds me of how all wild animals are in constant homeostasis with their natural environment. We humans have that same potential to directly communicate with the brain through our senses independent of our executive functions.
The Lemniscate - Guided Drawing®
Guided Drawing®
Guided Drawing® is an equally important approach that can bypass the cognitive processes and allow for the deeper layers of the brain stem and the limbic system to emerge (Elbrecht, 2018). During Guided Drawing® with adults we encourage the client to have eyes closed to enhance the awareness of body sense or felt sense. This entails the use of 2 hands holding crayons/chalks/paints and encouraging movements that activate both hemispheres of the brain through haptic perception and increased lateralisation. It is also very important to find a repetitive rhythm and a flow movement.
Both the Left Right song and Guided Drawing® can provide information on whether a client is feeling calm and regulated or stressed and dysregulated. Guided Drawing® can do so much more, if you understand the nuances of this amazing therapy.
As an assessment tool Guided Drawing® can highlight, if a client is disassociated by the fragmented line quality and the tightness of the 'frozen' hand. It can track emotions by the pressure applied and the application of certain shapes. Most importantly it can facilitate healing through the active response to an unresolved body memory.
Crossing the midline is a developmental milestone that if not met during that important early infant development will become visually obvious when using Guided Drawing® as a diagnostic tool.
In this sense Guided Drawing® can assist clients with lateralisation in the NMT sense that facilitates the catch up of developmental delays caused by unresolved childhood events.
Bibliography
Davies, Allison (2020,08,11) Music and the Brain, Blog post :https://www.allisondavies.com.au
Elbrecht, Cornelia. 2018. Healing trauma with guided drawing; a sensorimotor art therapy approach to bilateral body mapping. Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic Books.
Moore, K, (20, June,10) The "Right Left" Song: An Intervention for Children. Music Therapy Maven http//:www.musictherapymaven.com
Perry, Bruce. “Applying Principles of Neurodevelopment to clinical Work with Maltreated and Traumatized Children: The Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics.” In Webb, Working with Traumatized Youth in Child Welfare. New York: Guilford, 2005, 27-53.
Clare works predominately with adults using EMDR, Psychology, Guided Drawing, Breath Work, Somatics and Clay Field art therapy practices. However working with children using Sensorimotor Art Therapy is particularly rewarding. As a Gestalt practitioner, the innate wisdom of the body and the phenomenological approach of Sensorimotor Art Therapy are a natural fit. A background in Health Care and Counselling while working in hospitals and rehabs has given Clare extensive experience in life’s transitions, grief and loss, addiction and trauma.
MA, BSocSci, AThR, EMDR, ANZACATA, PACFA, GANZ
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